Christkindlmarkt in Salzburg, Austria

Figuring that we might never be in Europe in December again, we decided we should take advantage and go see a traditional European Christmas Market. We narrowed our choices down to Munich or Stuttgart in Germany, or Salzburg in Austria. After seeing some pictures of Salzburg, we decided the extra two hours or so of driving was worth it - and off we went. So quickly did we go, in fact, that we forgot to bring our passports. After realizing this fact a few hours into the drive, we decided to throw caution to the wind and keep going. After a few nervous moments at the Swiss-Austrian border, we were waived through by a customs agent without needing to show our identification. After that, part of our route took us into Germany, and onto the infamous German Autobahn. I have to admit, driving on the Autobahn was probably the highlight of the trip for me. We were going pretty fast, but even still, we were getting passed by cars that made us feel like we were standing still.
Salzburg is the birthplace of Mozart, and is also where much of the movie The Sound of Music was filmed. The old town of Salzburg is a beautiful collection of baroque buildings along the Salzach river, overlooked by a huge 10th century fortress at the top of a hill in the center of town. Pretty much the whole city gets decorated for the Advent season, and every open square turns into a Christmas market. Vendors sell their handmade ornaments and decorations, along with sausages, pretzels, pastries and mugs of hot, mulled wine. With all the christmas lights hung around town, the whole scene was pretty amazing at night. In the main square, musicians were set up on the top of buildings, and they took turns playing pieces by Mozart around the square.
Mason seemed to enjoy himself among the crowds in Salzburg. We don't think he quite understands that there are other foreign languages besides French, as he said "bonjour" to most everyone. He especially liked all of the "special treats" the vendors were selling. We all shared a huge, cream-filled, chocolate covered bavarian pretzel, complete with an edible likeness of Mozart. Mason devoured the picture of Mozart, and then exclaimed, "Eat Mozart! All gone."